On job performance reviews and promotions
Performance reviews are a common event in today's Corporate America.
So common, in fact, the we stopped thinking whether it measures what we think it's measuring.
To get promoted to a more responsible position, you are expected to show a track record of excellent reviews. Sounds reasonable.
Or is it?
Skill set
The set of skills needed to be, say, a team lead, is not similar to the set of skills that make a junior employee. For example, in the software industry, a development lead needs leadership and managerial skills that are irrelevant to a programmer. A good leader who is an OK programmer would see slow promotion; an excellent programmer with no people skill would soon be in management. This is the flip side of the Peter Pyramid.
Motivation
But that's not all. Junior programmers get the 'junior' tasks - the repetitive, less inspired, and less interesting. If a person with the skills and creativity is a junior developer, he is less likely to be interested and motivated, and thus will get at-best average reviews. If the same person were to start as a senior developer, his reviews would be better.
Employees as numbers
The root of all evil, of course, is employers treating their employees as numbers. "I want five level-IV developers" can be heard in management meetings. But developers are people, with skills, aspirations, and strengths, and should be managed as such.
Jump a hurdle
Of course, performance reviews do serve some purpose in determining performance - it's the ol' Hurdle Principle. If you put whatever hurdle, those who can jump it would be better motivated, and probably more qualified, than those who do not. But this is such a wasteful way
to sort the winners from the losers!
And a personal lesson
So what's the personal career note people should take from this? simple.
Don't undersell yourself. Taking on a lower position because 'you'd soon prove yourself and move up' is a fantasy. If you must, job markets being as they are, take a lower position. But don't get comfortable. Move on as soon as you can, before you start believing, as your boss does, that all you are is indeed a level-IV developer.
So common, in fact, the we stopped thinking whether it measures what we think it's measuring.
To get promoted to a more responsible position, you are expected to show a track record of excellent reviews. Sounds reasonable.
Or is it?
Skill set
The set of skills needed to be, say, a team lead, is not similar to the set of skills that make a junior employee. For example, in the software industry, a development lead needs leadership and managerial skills that are irrelevant to a programmer. A good leader who is an OK programmer would see slow promotion; an excellent programmer with no people skill would soon be in management. This is the flip side of the Peter Pyramid.
Motivation
But that's not all. Junior programmers get the 'junior' tasks - the repetitive, less inspired, and less interesting. If a person with the skills and creativity is a junior developer, he is less likely to be interested and motivated, and thus will get at-best average reviews. If the same person were to start as a senior developer, his reviews would be better.
Employees as numbers
The root of all evil, of course, is employers treating their employees as numbers. "I want five level-IV developers" can be heard in management meetings. But developers are people, with skills, aspirations, and strengths, and should be managed as such.
Jump a hurdle
Of course, performance reviews do serve some purpose in determining performance - it's the ol' Hurdle Principle. If you put whatever hurdle, those who can jump it would be better motivated, and probably more qualified, than those who do not. But this is such a wasteful way
to sort the winners from the losers!
And a personal lesson
So what's the personal career note people should take from this? simple.
Don't undersell yourself. Taking on a lower position because 'you'd soon prove yourself and move up' is a fantasy. If you must, job markets being as they are, take a lower position. But don't get comfortable. Move on as soon as you can, before you start believing, as your boss does, that all you are is indeed a level-IV developer.
posted by Unknown at
10:30 AM
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